Chapter 200: The Fisherman’s Game [Part 1]

"That one is one nasty beast," Psoglav commented as his single eye locked on the Blood Wyvern that was currently circling around the Centaur Tribe.

The Blood Wyvern was currently fighting against the top dog of the Centaur Tribe who was also of the Centennial Rank. However, not all creatures of the same rank were equal. There would always be racial differences between the two which would decide who had the upper hand or not.

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< Centaur War Chieftain >

-- Humanoid Creature

-- Centennial Beast

-- Threat Level: S (Mid)

-- Can be added to the herd

-- Success Rate: 1%

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William briefly glanced at the information of the Centaur War Chieftain. Basically, it was a Centaur that boasted the highest combat skills within the tribe. 

Right now, that same Centaur was keeping the Blood Wyvern at Bay using magical range attacks. However, that was exactly what the Blood Wyvern intended it to do. As long as the War Chieftain focused on it, the other Wyverns would be able to decimate the rest of the tribe using their superior strength.

Although the Centaur Tribe numbered around two thousand, the majority of them were Class C creatures with only a dozen Class B warriors at most. Wyverns were one of the Apex predators in the Whimsical Forest and even though the centaurs had the advantage in numbers, it was futile against their enemy.

While the battle was ongoing, a loud shriek pierced the air and fifty Hippogriffs appeared on the battlefield. 

They were allied with the centaurs and it was only natural to lend their assistance during times of need. Currently, there were fifteen Wyverns circling the tribal camp and some of their claws and beaks were already dyed in blood.

Clearly, they had killed a good number of centaur warriors during the clash and had gorged on their enemy's blood to regain their strength.

William recognized Damian leading a troop of centaurs while shooting arrows towards the Wyverns. These arrows harmlessly bounced off the Wyvern's scales which made the centaurs grit their teeth in frustration.

When the Hipogriffs arrived, the battle was no longer one sided, but the invaders still had the upper hand. 

William sighed as two hippogriffs were impaled by the Wyvern's stinger and crashed toward the ground. Naturally, they couldn't possibly interfere in the war directly, so the two hippogriffs died not long after their fatal crash. 

"So, what's the plan?" Psoglav asked as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Although I can't defeat any of those Wyverns, I am confident that as long as the Blood Wyvern doesn't interfere, I will be unharmed."

Psoglav was about to say more when they heard high-pitched chuckling sounds coming from the forest.

The centaurs grimaced as they saw one of the most annoying beasts that lived within the forest and that was none other than the Werehyenas. Just like the name suggests, they were quite similar to "Werewolves", but the difference was that they were Hyenas instead of wolves.

William frowned as he, once again, used his appraisal skill to identify the newcomers

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< Werehyena >

-- Therianthropic Hybrid

-- Threat Level: C (Mid)

-- Cannot be added to the herd

-- A powerful scavenger that feasts on the flesh of both humans and beasts. 

-- This creature has three forms, a human form, a large hyena, or a hybrid that is similar to a Werewolf.

-- Unlike Werewolves who can only transform during the night, Werehyenas can transform any time of the day and don't have many restrictions like the other Therianthropic Hybrids.

-- Strong and sly, these creatures are one of the most annoying beasts that one can encounter in the Southern Continent.

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The Werehyenas' high-pitched laughter made the already hopeless situation unbearable. They ran towards the location where the two hipogriffs had fallen and immediately dragged their dead bodies away.

They didn't go far before they started to feast on the Hipogriff's flesh. They had a very strong resistance to poison, so even the Wyvern's poison--that had killed the magical beasts--wasn't a concern to them.

Psoglav whistled as he looked at the new arrivals with admiration.

"Now things have become more complicated," Psoglav chuckled. "What are we going to do now, Shepherd?"

William assessed the situation carefully and knew that he wouldn't be able to turn the tides with his current power. Since that was the case, it was now time to borrow the power of others. 

"Fourth Master, can you lend me your assistance, just this once?" William asked.

Kenneth and the Psoglav looked at him in confusion because they didn't know who this "Fourth Master" was.

A soft rustling sound was heard beside the tree opposite them and a man wearing a hooded robe appeared out of thin air.

"What do you have in mind?" Ezio asked. 

Ezio officially became William's Fourth Master after the boy had succumbed to the dark side of humanity. He taught the Half-Elf many things, including the art of torturing people. Among William's Masters', Ezio was a man of few words. When talking to him, William had to get straight to the point in order to save time.

"Fourth Master, can you deal with the Blood Wyvern?" William asked.

This was the most pressing matter right now. As long as the Blood Wyvern was defeated, the Centaur War Chief would be able to deal with the other Wyverns quite easily.

"I can, but I will need some help," Ezio replied as he glanced at his two comrades who were sent by their commander.

Damian and Gideon just nodded their heads in understanding. They would help Ezio deal with the Blood Wyvern, while William dealt with the rest.

"Be safe, Young Master," Damian said as he patted the boy's shoulder.

"Don't let the Werehyenas bite you," Gideon commented. "The Commander will kill us if you turn into one of them."

William nodded his head. "Be at ease, Seniors."

After getting his reply, the three men disappeared. William didn't know where they were, but he was certain of one thing. The Blood Wyvern would soon be dealt with.

"Let's go," William said as he jumped off the tree.

Kenneth and Psoglav followed suit and landed on the ground.

Ella transformed into her War Ibex form and allowed William and Kenneth to ride on her back. 

"We will first join the centaurs and help them repel the Werehyenas," William explained his plan. "Psoglav, summon your Doppelganger to help catch the Hippogriffs just like you did yesterday. Leave the rest to me."

"Alright, but I want a few cores from the Werehyenas," Psoglav replied while stating his condition.

"Okay."

"I like dealing with smart people."

Ella charged towards the battlefield while William fired arrows at the Werehyenas that were closing in on the Centaurs. 

The centaurs, on the other hand, glanced at Damian to wait for his orders. They didn't know whether to attack William or turn a blind eye on his actions.

"Don't mind him for now," Bastian ordered. "Attack the Werehyenas!"

The centaurs roared in acknowledgement and charged towards the annoying scavengers with their pikes and lances. The battle became more intense as both sides fought tooth and nail for supremacy.

The Centaurs were clearly at a disadvantage because the Wyverns and the Werehyenas seemed to be in cahoots with each other. Using their superior numbers, the centaurs chased away the Werehyenas and managed to kill six of them.

However, the Werehyenas and the Wyverns managed to kill more than a hundred centaurs in the span of a few minutes. 

William waved his hand and shamelessly snatched the dead bodies of the Werehyenas inside his storage ring. The centaurs were not in the mood to pay attention to his petty action because their entire tribe was at stake.

Ella's horns embedded themselves in a Werehyena that was about to deal the finishing blow to a fallen centaur. The creature shrieked in pain, but William's spear pierced its eyes, all the way through its brain, ending its life in the process.

The Werehyenas attack became frenzied, but William's and the Centaurs' united assault overpowered their rabid attacks. 

Suddenly, a Wyvern descended towards the Werehyenas and the Centaurs that were engaged in close combat and opened its jaws wide. 

"It's going to fire its Dragon Breath!" Damian shouted in order to warn William and their temporary allies. . 

Flames erupted from the Wyvern's mouth as it shot it towards the ground like a flamethrower. The centaurs immediately evaded, but some of them weren't able to react in time. A dozen warriors were incinerated by the flames and died while crying out painfully. 

Psoglav did his best to catch the falling hippogriff's, but most of them were already dead when he caught them. Unlike Gryphons, Wyverns could easily tear a Hippogriff in half due to its superior strength.

Out of the fifty Hippogriffs that joined the battle, fifteen had already fallen, and Psoglav was only able to save four. However, the four magical beasts were already in a near-death condition with their wings and limbs torn off from their bodies.

One of them had been impaled by a Wyvern's stinger and was only a minute away from dying. 

William hurriedly added these beasts to his herd, and gave the dying Hippogriff an antidote. 

One of the Wyverns saw William's action and immediately dove down from the sky in order to kill him. When it was only a hundred meters away from the boy, a silver-steel thread wrapped around its body, stopping it in its tracks. 

Ezio, Damian, and Gideon jumped on its back and forcefully veered it to its right side. The Wyvern was enraged by the sudden ambush it had received from the weak humans and tried to shrug them off from his back.

Unfortunately, the three men riding on its back were its worst nightmare. Damian laughed as he clamped a collar on the Wyvern's neck. After the collar was firmly locked in place, the Wyvern froze in the air before rising to the sky.

Damian was a Beastmaster. Naturally, he could tame many kinds of beasts. His forte was taming flying creatures.

Gideon was a Beastmaster as well. However, his specialty was land based creatures. Together, they formed a formidable team that could capture different beasts in both land and sky. 

Damian controlled the Wyvern and sneakily approached one of its brethren. When he was close enough, the Beastmaster jumped off from the Wyvern's back and threw the silver-steel thread towards the opposite Wyvern's neck. 

The Wyvern was busy dealing with the centaurs on the ground, so it didn't notice the Beastmaster that had snuck up on it from behind. Just like the first Wyvern, Damian easily took control of the second one.

"I can only control two of these Beasts at a time," Damian said. "The Blood Wyvern's Rank is too high for me. I won't be able to capture it."

"Don't worry, just let me get close to it," Ezio replied.

"Alright." Damian nodded his head as Ezio transferred to the Wyvern he was currently controlling. 

Ezio's confident reply made Damian remember that this reclusive comrade of theirs was someone who could fight against Centennial Beasts alone. 

Ezio eyed the Blood Wyvern in the distance with a calm expression. However, deep down inside, he was feeling a sense of anticipation. Perhaps, it was because he had become so accustomed to killing people that he hadn't had the time to hunt down strong beasts as of late.

Regardless of the reason, William's Fourth Master looked at the Centennial Beast with admiration.

'It's very rare to see a Blood Wyvern, even in the Southern Continent,' Ezio mused. 'Killing it would be a waste.'